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The landscapes that humanity have inhabited throughout our evolutionary history have met our needs and also substantially shaped our progress. We too, have substantially shaped the landscape, atmosphere and waters of this resilient yet finite world, appropriating increasing proportions of the resources of nature to meet our shifting and growing demands whilst simultaneously degrading the quality and extent of ecosystems together with their capacities to meet the needs of a burgeoning population. Notwithstanding our total dependence on the Earth's natural resources, this relationship between humanity and the land has shifted significantly and frequently throughout our tenure, brief as it is relative to the evolution of planetary life. Common Ground explores the shifting relationship between human society and the landscapes that bear it. In so doing, it explores changing understandings of the natural world and its management and exploitation, presenting suggestions for solutions in the nature of ecosystem services.
